


The Fireside

by maraudersimp



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Background Wolfstar, Black Family-centric (Harry Potter), Eurybius Moody (OC), Gay Alphard Black, Gay Sirius Black, Oneshot, POV Alphard Black, Sirius speaks to Alphard
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-02-13
Updated: 2021-02-13
Packaged: 2021-03-12 07:14:05
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,680
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29381187
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/maraudersimp/pseuds/maraudersimp
Summary: a short snippet of winter in 1975, in which Sirius visits Alphard in the dead of night and they discuss their family dynamic.
Relationships: Alphard Black/Original Male Character(s), Sirius Black/Remus Lupin
Comments: 3
Kudos: 10





	1. The Boy in the Drawing Room

Alphard was no stranger to waking suddenly in the dead of night. He would often find himself staring up at the drapes covering his four-poster, his mothers' voice swimming through his head, sickly sweet and oily. Irma Black clung to the edges of his dreams like a bad case of spattergroit. However, he had never before been interrupted by scuffling at the drawing-room window. He pushed away the last tendrils of sleep that were gripping his mind and groggily turned to Eurybius who was still very much dead to the world, thank merlin. He was facing Alphard, mouth slightly open, face completely relaxed, his dark fringe gently brushed the edge of his lashes. 

_A charming creature,_ Alphard thought. _One I'm lucky to have._

Another soft shuffle from across the hallway drew his attention back to the drawing-room, and the reality of the noises started to settle. He thought of fights with Cygnus and threats from that blasted Crouch man, would they go so far as to do away with him? Surely not, he’d made sure to keep out of their hair well enough. Orion though, he was nothing if not thorough, and Alphard was definitely not foolish enough to underestimate the House of Black. 

He set his feet down on the plush rug that covered the bedroom floor and grabbed his wand from the dark oak table that sat next to the bed, summoning his most ornate robe and comfiest set of slippers from their positions around the room. 

_If I am to die tonight I shall die with dignity,_ he allowed himself an element of humour as he exited the bedroom. His hands were shaking as we warded the door shut in the hopes it would buy Eurybius enough time to make his escape. Alphard was more nervous about facing his darling cousin than he was willing to admit. 

There was no light in the hallway, a quick _tempus_ told him it was three in the morning and he found himself thinking

_If this is some ruddy bird I'm going to have Pinky fry it for our supper._

Slowly, carefully, Alphard unlocked the drawing-room door and slipped silently inside. Hunched over a large globe that sat in the far corner of the room, was a small figure. Their pale fingers were tracing over the pacific ocean, they seemed to be lost in it as they hadn’t noticed Alphard come in. The window was open halfway, and the chill of the night air settled on Alphards chest as he stared at the boy in the corner. Shivering slightly, he flicked his wand at the fireplace and watched the boy jump nearly a mile in the air as he whipped his head around. 

“Uncle!” he yelled, “I’m sorry I didn’t mean to wake to, I was going to wait a little while longer. Forgive me for using the window I.. well… the door… it....”

Sirius trailed off, the reason behind his dislike of regular entry points dying on his tongue as Alphards brow raised higher and higher on his forehead. 

“I hadn’t realised you’d begun a career as an owl, Sirius.” He said “Tapping on windows surely can’t be so interesting that you’d come all this way for a lark. What seems to be the occasion? Do move closer to the fire, boy, you look half dead.”

He wasn’t wrong, his nephew’s hair hung lank around his pallid face and it was impossible to ignore the slight tremors moving up and down his arms. 

“The occasion,” he scoffed. “The occasion was the god awful dinner I had to sit through. Father invited that Blake girl again, he’s under the impression that we’re to marry and produce him an heir. It’s ridiculous, I don’t want to marry. Andromeda lives too far away and the night bus makes me feel nauseous so I came to you because you’ll back me up. You found a way out without actually having to leave.”

Alphard furrowed his brow and took a steadying breath. 

“Well, count yourself lucky she’s no second cousin.”

Sirius blinked, his eyes grew wide.

“What?”

“Larona Crouch, the woman my father set me to marry, was my second cousin,” he smiled. “I dare say it was a close call with you and Regulus, odds are our gene pool won’t be able to handle much more in-breeding. Count yourself lucky, darling. I just hope for your sake she’s kind.”

Sirius didn’t say anything for a while, his mouth hung open in a gormless expression of disbelief.

“You’re not going to help me?” 

“With what?” Alphard replied. “The marriage or the children.”

He felt his naturally thin patience stretch thinner with every word spoken at such an ungodly hour.

“This isn’t a joke. You’re supposed to understand. I’m not like Regulus. I’ve tried but I can’t just turn this off, I’m not going to marry a woman. I can’t.” 

Alphard let out a deep sigh “Sirius. You are in a delicate situation but it isn’t unique. Think of the Sirius who came before you, three wonderful children, a beautiful bride, and no shortage of time to spare that he spent with the person he truly loved. I dare say his character was unsavoury but you see that if you just hold on for a few more years, keep your head down-” 

“You never kept your head down! You left your own blasted wife at the altar for a man and they didn't even bother burning you off the tapestry like they did with Andy! Mother always used to parrot on about how you talked back to Pollux and skipped family dinners and-”

“I was in a wildly different position to you, boy!” Alphard roared, “I was a middle child! In Slytherin! I wasn’t gallivanting the halls of Gryffindor house with blood traitors and half-bloods, heir to the house of Black!”

The words hung heavy between them, and Sirius, Merlin, he looked so small. It was as though Alphard had summoned some kind of character with his speech, and all the brightness Sirius trailed around with him had retreated back into his body, encased in a careful mask. For one horrible second, Alphard saw Walburga written across his nephew’s face; his mouth was drawn into a tight line, his pale eyes were steely and unforgiving, but the illusion was broken by a wobble at his chin, the way his fingers rubbed together tersely in fists at his sides. The shame Alphard felt in that moment was like no other shame he had felt before, the look on Sirius’s face had stolen his voice away. He knew now that when Sirius looked at him he did not see his uncle Alphard, he saw his mother, his father, Cygnus, Pollux, every Salazar forsaken Black family elder who had punished him for merely daring to be himself. 

_There you are Alphard,_ Irma’s slippery voice found its way into his ear. _forever my son._

Alphard let out a deep sigh and hung his head. 

“Sit.” he offered gently, waving his hand towards a deep plum armchair. “I’m sorry for losing my temper, let’s talk.”

Sirius didn’t move, he only cocked his head slightly, clearly trying to figure out his uncle’s intentions. Alphard counted that as a small victory, so long as the boy was still willing to be in a room with him. 

With a wave of his wand, an expensive Chinese tea set began to prepare two cups atop the coffee table. The sky outside was still dark through the open window, and a soft breeze shifted the silver tassels that adorned the parted curtains. Alphard readjusted his robe and sunk himself into his favourite chair, one that mirrored Sirius’s but had been charmed to accommodate Alphards reading habits in light of recent developments with back pain. Sirius still hadn’t moved from his spot by the globe. His eyes had been warily trailing Alphard around the room, so he resigned himself to staring into the fire and waiting until both Sirius and the tea were ready.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm not particularly happy with this but I will be posting the next chapter tomorrow Xx
> 
> Comments would be appreciated, Alphard is such an interesting character to me and this is the first time I'm allowing myself to explore him so I'd like to hear how you found the characterisation from this brief introduction <3


	2. Allegiance

Sirius gave in and took his place by the fireside not long after seeing a neatly steaming cup of rich chamomile tea float its way over to his uncle. He quickly gave up all pretense of stiffness and pomp and flung himself down with little regard for the safety of either him or the chair, and he stretched his legs out straight towards the hearth, staring into the flames as though they’d personally offended him. Alphard was not quite sure whether he should be amused or offended at the boy’s incessant need to disrespect every rule of etiquette that had been drilled into him. He settled for both, he was much too tired for thinking. 

“I’m sure you’re aware of how important self-preservation is, Sirius, especially within our family.”

Sirius said nothing. The only indication that he had heard anything was a slight flicker of his lashes over eyes that were still fiercely pointed at the roaring fire. 

“We must each look out for ourselves,” Alphard continued, “involving ourselves in the business of others is unseemly, it weakens us, creates loose ends.”

He took a sip of his tea and tried to push through the deep concern that gnawed its way through his gut whenever issues surrounding Sirius arose. 

“My position within our household is one of blinding unimportance. Cygnus’s role was to produce an heir and carry on the family name,” Sirius rolled his eyes at that, “My sister’s role was to form an alliance with another respectable household, although the only household deemed respectable in Pollux’s eyes was his own.”

As he spoke, Alphard rolled his thumb over a silver dragon that moved about the rim of his cup. Its scales glinted in the orange light of the drawing-room, and occasionally it would release a puff of flames to indicate a warming charm was at work, keeping his tea at the perfect temperature. 

“But you’re the eldest son.” Sirius finally spoke up, “It doesn’t make sense that the role would fall to Cygnus, if that were the case then Regulus would have to take on my responsibility.”

“Responsibility does not _tend_ to befall boys who talk back to their fathers, and my brother was obedient enough that I found a way to settle into the background of our cohort.”

Sirius made to interrupt but Alphard held up a hand. If the boy were going to learn one thing tonight, it would be patience. He moved his hand back down to his wand and directed the second cup of tea over to Sirius’s chair. When Sirius accepted the drink and sank into its warmth, Alphard continued.

“Nothing about my outward character, apart from an obvious rejection of familial responsibility, gave my father any reason to question my devotion to this family and its values. You also have to remember that Walburga married Orion as soon as she came of age, which meant the role of the eldest child had been fulfilled and the rest of us were essentially spare parts. Of course, as I grew up I questioned them, I learned ambition and cunning is no excuse for cruelty, something they could never hope to understand. But I didn’t make it my mission to reform them, boy.” Sirius bristled, Alphard could practically see the counter-argument prickling on the edge of his tongue. “You, Sirius, are an exception. You always have been. I understand you cannot help being in the house you are in, I understand you may feel a certain loyalty to the boys you share a dormitory with, but no-one in this family ever accomplished anything worthwhile whilst being themselves. If you truly are so devoted to distancing yourself from us, why are you so paranoid about disownment? You say you want a way out without actually having to leave. I have given it to you, just because you disagree with what I say does not mean I am wrong.”

All the time Alphard had been talking, Sirius had been staring at the gold dragon on his own cup. Alphard gave him time to think, grateful for penetrating at least one layer of resistance. Sirius worried his bottom lip for a second before plainly saying,

“I can’t leave Regulus there. All he would have is that bloody house elf and those useless portraits. My loyalty lies with him, but if I stay...” His breath hitched and he placed his half-empty teacup on the corner of the table, Alphard suppressed a wince. “You’re telling me that if I stay I’ll have to give up everything else that makes me happy." He looked right into Alphard's eyes. "That doesn’t seem like self-preservation to me, uncle.”

Alphard was struck, then, with a sense that the boy sitting before him was far older than his 15 years. Here he was, a 41-year-old man being lectured on the nature of family allegiances at three in the morning, in his own drawing-room, by his own nephew, in his comfiest slippers. Sirius’s relationship with his brother was something Alphard now realised he’d overlooked. Regulus was so quiet and obedient, it had seemed obvious that the two would be at odds. Sirius regarded Alphard carefully for a second before he spoke again.

“The worse I am, the better he looks. But if I leave, I will no longer be present to be  _ ‘made an example of’ _ ” He strained his voice in a frankly terrifyingly accurate impression of Walburga, “and what happens then? Any freedom he has while I’m living in that house will be stripped away to make sure he sticks. Regulus won’t have the luxury of knowing that if he messes up and somehow manages to get disowned there will be someone else there to take the fall. What sort of brother would I be if I put him in that position?” 

His eyes glazed over as he spoke, and by the time he’d finished a single tear had left a silver trail down his left cheek as he stared at Alphard with a helpless look on his face. Alphard was torn, not as much as Sirius clearly was but he was torn nonetheless. He felt terribly out of his depth and fought a feeling of annoyance at his sister for being such a shoddy mother he’d been landed with the parental duties. His mind drifted back to the bed where Eurybius lay, hopefully, undisturbed by the noises coming from the room across the hall. Had he been worth those arguments and threats? Had loving him been worth the scar on his side from Crouch’s scornful curse? 

_ Without question,  _ he thought immediately.

He then thought of Andromeda. Hadn’t she also abandoned her role as eldest daughter for something as simple as love? He’d certainly spent more time around the three girls as children than he had around Sirius and Regulus. He had seen the way she had cared for Narcissa and her fierceness, and doted upon Bellatrix despite her cruelty, and yet he’d never allowed himself to consider how difficult it must have been for her to leave them to their own devices. Every Black family member on that ghastly tree who had been cast off and sent out, scorch marks or not, had been cast off and sent out for loving someone they were not supposed to. 

“Well, Sirius I think you should be very proud of yourself.” 

Alphard rose from his chair, tightening the fabric belt around his middle once again, and made his way over to the still open window. He peeked his head outside to assess the damage done to the wards and muttered a couple of reinforcements, before snapping his head inside quickly so as to not become decapitated by the force of the wooden window frame slamming back down. 

“Not only did you single-handedly obliterate my highly intricate warding system,” Sirius cringed in his seat and looked down at his shoes as Alphard took his place behind the chair and rested his hands atop the high backrest, “but you also, and Merlin knows how you pulled this one off, proved me wrong.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm a little happier with this chapter, I feel like I'm getting a better hold on both Sirius and Alphard's characters
> 
> comments are always super appreciated, I'll update this story tomorrow with what I think will be the final chapter (although I am making this up as I go along)
> 
> Hope you're doing well Xx


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